Jose Mourinho opens up on 'shock' Tottenham Hotspur dismissal and reveals plans for Real Madrid squad in summer transfer window

Mourinho was dismissed shortly before the final despite being a serial trophy winner in England, where he won eight domestic trophies with Chelsea and Manchester United, including four League Cups.

At that point, the iconic Portuguese boss had accumulated 25 trophies in his managerial career, which featured multiple Premier League and UEFA Champions League titles, as well as Serie A and La Liga titles, the Emirates FA Cup and the UEFA Europa League.

In an interview with the Beast Mode On podcast, Mourinho gave an honest reflection on his dismissal, which he said he "couldn't believe" at the time.

"I know that the final was at an almost empty Wembley [due to the Covid-19 pandemic]. It was an empty Wembley, not that big feeling of Wembley. But it was a final," he explained.

"It was a final in a moment where Tottenham had no trophies. At this moment, yes, they won the Europa League [in 2025], but at that time, nothing.

"It was Harry Kane, zero titles, Son [Heung-min], zero titles, Hugo Lloris, with Tottenham, zero titles."

At that point, Spurs had not picked up any silverware since their League Cup triumph in 2008, whereas Mourinho had added 13 medals to his impressive haul.

Still, that was not enough to keep him in the job to face Pep Guardiola's Manchester City at Wembley, with rookie interim head coach Ryan Mason given the keys instead.

"I was up to it [managing the final]," Mourinho continued. "I remember we played that week, we should play Southampton before the final, and my focus was totally on the final. So it was a shock.

"I believe that one of the reasons was exactly that my focus was on the final and not Southampton. Because for the club, not the fans, the owners, it was more important to try to qualify for the Champions League, for financial reasons, so Southampton was a very important match.

"For me, the important match was the final. It was a medal, a cup, joy for the fans, and Harry Kane was injured. He was a doubt for the final. And in case Harry doesn't recover for the final, the striker had to be Son. Imagine the final without Son and Kane!

"So when the [Spurs hierarchy] asked me: 'What do you think about the Southampton match?' I said: 'I want to win, we are going to try to win, but without Harry I will leave Son on the bench.'

"I think it was a kind of contradiction because for them the final didn't matter much, for me and the players, it meant everything."

Spurs lost the final 1-0 to Manchester City and finished seventh in the Premier League.

Mourinho also spoke about his upcoming second managerial stint with Real Madrid, having previously led the club from 2010 to 2013.

Mourinho was appointed as Madrid head coach earlier this summer, replacing Alvaro Arbeloa.

With Madrid having gone trophy-less over the last two seasons, Mourinho has addressed rumours that he wants to "cut some of the top players."

"I read a few things where people were saying: 'Jose Mourinho is coming here and he's going to cut some of the top players, who supposedly had some problems during the season'. No," he said.

"I want these players! I want the best players. Now I have to find a way to have a team and not to have problems like, eventually, I don't know, I'm just reading, that they had in previous seasons. But the best players are the players that you want. If you have problems with not very good players, that is a big problem. The big players are the big players.

"I don't like to speak much. I don't speak about myself, and I don't like to speak much. I need to know the players, and I want the players to know it's not about what people say about me, it's about what they see in me.

"We need to know each other well. And then I always say, I don't make miracles. But I can improve the guys that are improvable, the guys that want to improve. [With] some other guys, it's an impossible job. You have to just accept the way they are."

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